Best Buy, Future Shop to sell Roku boxes

Media | 05/30/2013 8:30 pm EDT

New set-top boxes offered by online streaming company Roku Inc. are now available at Best Buy and Future Shop locations in Canada, the company said. In a release Thursday, Roku said two devices, the Roku 2 XD and Roku 2 XS, are...

CBC’s exemption from disclosure is subjective, Legault says

Media | 05/29/2013 10:16 pm EDT

A private member’s bill intended to prevent CBC/Radio-Canada from denying access to information requests would “generate more disclosure” but would not remove confusion about when the public broadcaster can deny requests, Information Commissioner Suzanne Legault told a parliamentary committee. Bill C-461,...

ZoomerMedia profits, revenues, rise in Q3

Media | 05/29/2013 10:01 pm EDT

ZoomerMedia Ltd. reported a rise in profits and revenues for its third quarter. In a release Wednesday for the company’s financial results for the three-month period that ended March 31, 2013, Zoomer reported third-quarter revenues of $13.1 million, up from $12.8 million in the same quarter last year. Zoomer’s earnings before interest,...

Cook says Apple has ‘game changing’ products

Media | 05/29/2013 9:57 pm EDT

Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook said at the All Things Digital conference Tuesday that the company has more “game changing” products ahead. “Many people now say that innovation means a new category,” Tim Cook said, according to technology news website TechCrunch. “Yes, we’re still a company...

Shaw offering free previews of Blue Ant channels

Media | 05/29/2013 9:44 pm EDT

Blue Ant Media Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc. reached an agreement to offer Shaw cable subscribers free previews of three Blue Ant specialty channels. Shaw cable customers will have free access to HIFI, eqHD and radX until July 4, and Shaw Direct satellite TV will offer the free previews until August 29, Blue Ant said in a release Monday. HIFI and eqHD offer documentary programming and radX features adventure and action films....

ATN profits fall on weaker advertising, costs

Media | 05/29/2013 9:41 pm EDT

Asian Television Network International Ltd.’s(ATN) first-quarter profits fell by 30 per cent from a year earlier despite an increase in revenues. In first-quarter financial results released Tuesday, ATN reported $6.8 million in revenues for the three-month period that ended March 31, a seven per cent rise from the same period a year earlier. ATN...

CBC happy with more licensing flexibility

Media | 05/29/2013 9:36 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada is pleased the CRTC gave it more flexibility over the type of programming it airs on its national television services, Bev Kirshenblatt, the CBC’s senior director of regulatory affairs, said in an interview....

CAB, OAB disappointed with CBC radio advertising

Media | 05/29/2013 9:24 pm EDT

The Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB) and the Ontario Association of Broadcasters (OAB) said they are disappointed with the CRTC’s decision to allow CBC/Radio-Canada to advertise on its Radio 2 and Espace Musique...

Shaw Direct launches 120 new HD channels

Media | 05/29/2013 9:19 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. launched 120 new high-definition channels on its Shaw Direct satellite TV system, the company said. In a release Wednesday, Shaw said it is offering the new channels using Telesat’s Anik G1...

Fair Deal coalition lobbies Fast on TPP copyright issues

Media | 05/29/2013 6:16 pm EDT

A new network of groups called the Fair Deal coalition wrote a letter to International Trade Minister Ed Fast asking for protections for citizens and innovative companies in copyright policy as part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade talks. Governments should reject copyright proposals that restrict the open...

CBC proposes disclosing salary ranges, not salaries

Media | 05/28/2013 9:41 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada suggested disclosing salary ranges under the Access to Information Act instead of specific salaries. “We would suggest that the combination of our salary ranges being public, available proactively and under...

ACTRA, Writers Guild, weigh in on CBC licence renewal

Media | 05/28/2013 8:35 pm EDT

The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) supported the CRTC’s decision requiring that CBC/Radio-Canada air a minimum amount of children’s programming on its national TV networks while...

Vice-chair of broadcasting dissents with CRTC approval of CBC radio advertising

Media | 05/28/2013 7:46 pm EDT

A CRTC decision permitting advertising on CBC/Radio-Canada’s Radio 2 and Espace Musique music channels is a “double insult” to private broadcasters and the Canadian public, and risks...

FTC probes Google’s ad sales: Reuters

Media | 05/24/2013 8:55 pm EDT

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is in the early stages of an antitrust probe into some of Google Inc.’s online advertising sales, Reuters reported Friday, citing sources familiar with the situation. The probe follows complaints by competing online ad placement agencies, which said Google is leveraging some of its most popular products to push websites into using Google products such as Ad Exchange, sources told Reuters. The FTC wrapped up an earlier antitrust investigation into Google’s web search results this year, and the company is under investigation in Europe over concerns that it disadvantages rival travel and shopping websites, among others, in its online search results. In Canada, the federal Competition Bureau told Google last week that it is looking into...

Four offers made for Hulu: L.A. Times

Media | 05/24/2013 8:51 pm EDT

U.S. broadcast distributors DirecTV and Time Warner Cable Inc. are among four parties that submitted initial offers to acquire American over-the-top video service Hulu, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday. New media company The Chernin Group and investment firm Providence Equity also submitted a joint-offer, as well as Guggenheim Digital Media, the...

Stoddart proposes amendments to PIPEDA

Media | 05/24/2013 5:34 pm EDT

Better incentives are needed to ensure companies build privacy protections into their products and services from the start, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner said in a new report. In a paper released Thursday called “The Case for Reforming the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA),” Privacy Commissioner...

CRTC consulting on broadcast applications

Media | 05/24/2013 5:27 pm EDT

The CRTC opened a consultation on four broadcast applications, including a CBC/Radio-Canada request to operate a new FM radio station in Saskatoon. In a notice Wednesday, the CRTC said it is consulting on a CBC application for a licence for a new English-language CBC Radio One station in Saskatoon. The CRTC said it is also consulting on a request from...

Contenu QMI appoints four new directors

Media | 05/23/2013 9:49 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc. division Contenu QMI announced the appointment of four new directors to its Contenu QMI acquisitions sector. In a release Thursday, Yann Paquet, vice-president of Contenu QMI acquisitions, said Sylvie Tremblay...

CBC employees are not public servants, Lacroix tells finance committee

Media | 05/23/2013 7:34 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada president and CEO Hubert Lacroix proposed an amendment to the Conservative government's budget bill that he said would help ensure the broadcaster's independence from cabinet. CBC employees are not public servants, Lacroix said in the letter, and it's “vital” to the Crown corporation that it operate as an independent public broadcaster. In a letter to the House of Commons finance committee, posted on CBC’s website Wednesday, Lacroix said...

Bell Aliant expanding fibre to Sault Ste. Marie

Media | 05/22/2013 9:18 pm EDT

Bell Aliant Inc. is expanding its FibreOp fibre-to-the-home network to Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., the company said. In a release Wednesday, Bell Aliant said it will invest $15 million to roll out its fibre network past 24,000 buildings and residences in the Northern Ontario city. The move will allow the company to offer fibre-based Internet and TV...

Dholandas replaces O’Leary in Paradis’ office

Media | 05/22/2013 9:06 pm EDT

Carl Dholandas replaced Sean O’Leary as Industry Minister Christian Paradis' lead telecom policy adviser, a person with knowledge of the staffing change said. O'Leary, who met frequently with members of the telecom industry according to registrations in the federal lobbying registry, is now working as a...

Cogeco expands on-demand service

Media | 05/22/2013 8:34 pm EDT

Cogeco Cable Inc. expanded its video on demand library available in Ontario, the company said Wednesday. In a release, Cogeco said most of its digital television subscribers in Ontario now have access to nearly 7,000 titles, up from 3,000 in April. Rogers Communications Inc. is also expanding its video-on-demand service with new titles.  David...

BCE says its non-sports rights fees rose less than inflation, or fell

Media | 05/22/2013 7:36 pm EDT

BCE Inc. division Bell Media said broadcast distributors' wholesale fees for access to the company's non-sports programming fell or rose less than the rate of inflation when multi-year...

Patrone joins Sun News

Media | 05/21/2013 10:26 pm EDT

Former CRTC commissioner Marc Patrone is joining Sun News Network as the channel's director of news operations for Western Canada, the Chronicle Herald reported Friday. Patrone, a former television journalist, completed a five-year term as a CRTC national commissioner on March 18. He is barred...

Tories should look at ‘broken’ Copyright Board: Geist

Media | 05/21/2013 10:23 pm EDT

The Conservative government should take a look at the Copyright Board as its next move on copyright policy, said Michael Geist, the Canada research chair in Internet and e-commerce law at the University of Ottawa. “If the government is looking for the next copyright issue to examine, it might well focus on a board...

More Canadians surf and watch, MTM says

Media | 05/21/2013 10:00 pm EDT

The rate of English-speaking Canadians using the Internet while watching television has more than doubled from seven years ago, a new report by Media Technology Monitor (MTM) said. In its “Multitasking – TV and the...

Social TV still in its infancy, MTM report

Media | 05/21/2013 9:59 pm EDT

Canadian consumers are slowly embracing social TV habits, but the practice is still in its infancy, a new report by Media Technology Monitor (MTM) said. According to the new “Social TV” report dated May 16 and released Tuesday, MTM, a joint research project between CBC/Radio-Canada and BBM Analytics, said six per cent of Canadians talk...

VimpelCom says it could hold on to Wind

Media | 05/17/2013 8:48 pm EDT

Wind Mobile’s parent company VimpelCom Ltd. is keeping its options open in the Canadian market and is not yet committed to selling the new entrant carrier, Jo Lunder, VimpelCom’s CEO, said. In a conference call with analysts Wednesday, Lunder said VimpelCom is awaiting regulatory approval from Industry Canada for formal control of the Canadian carrier, and said it will determine what to do with Wind once that process is complete. “That’s the focus right now and then we—we will conclude that we do an organic growth play there, and ... that we merge with, try to...

U.S. bill would require a la carte TV options

Media | 05/17/2013 8:34 pm EDT

U.S. Senator John McCain introduced a bill that would require American broadcast distributors to offer “a la carte” programming options for consumers who want to subscribe to individual TV channels instead of channel bundles. Introduced in the U.S. Senate on May 9, the bill, called Television Consumer Freedom Act of 2013, would codify...

CRTC grants flexibility to Bell channels

Media | 05/17/2013 7:46 pm EDT

The CRTC approved three applications by BCE Inc.’s Bell Media division to allow more programming flexibility on its Discovery World HD, Animal Planet and Investigation Discovery specialty channels. In a decision Friday, the commission said it will allow Discovery World HD to air religious, sports and music video programming. In a separate...

Safeguards not enough to limit Bell-Astral market power, competitors say

Media | 05/16/2013 9:25 pm EDT

Additional safeguards intended to protect competitors and consumers from a larger stable of media assets under BCE Inc. are not enough for the broadcast regulator to approve its purchase of Astral...

Google launches music service in U.S.

Media | 05/15/2013 9:50 pm EDT

Google Inc. launched a new U.S. music streaming service that allows users to access unlimited music online for $10 US per month, the company said. The new service, which the company announced Wednesday at its annual developers...

Media concentration inches downward, research group says

Media | 05/15/2013 9:42 pm EDT

Ownership concentration in Canada’s media sector fell slightly in 2012, a new report by the Canadian Media Concentration Research Project (CMCR) said. In an analysis of CRTC data posted on its website Wednesday, the project said ownership concentration levels fell in 2012 in each of the conventional TV, “total” TV, broadcast distribution, and radio sectors. Ownership concentration in the pay and specialty TV industry, when segregated from total TV figures, was steady in 2012, the project said. According to the analysis, Canada’s four largest conventional broadcasters held an 83 per cent share of the conventional TV market in 2012, down from 87 per cent in 2011. CBC/Radio-Canada, BCE Inc., Shaw Communications Inc. and Quebecor Media Inc. lost market share to...

Astral announces Harold Greenberg Fund recipients

Media | 05/15/2013 8:37 pm EDT

Astral Media Inc. will help fund 27 English-language script development projects through its Harold Greenberg Fund script development program, the company said. In a release Wednesday, Astral said it will provide funding to four projects during their “treatment to first draft” stages, including Alias Grace, a Tangled Inc. production being...

WiFi offloading growing faster than expected: Sandvine

Media | 05/15/2013 5:10 pm EDT

Mobile wireless subscribers offloaded their Internet traffic onto fixed, or wireline, WiFi networks at a much higher rate than forecasted, Sandvine Inc. said in a new report. Sandvine's...

BBC Worldwide Canada appoints Smith as senior VP

Media | 05/15/2013 1:08 pm EDT

BBC Worldwide Canada, a division of BBC, appointed Michael Smith as senior vice-president of television sales, co-productions and digital distribution, the broadcaster said Monday. In a release, BBC said Smith’s appointment is effective immediately and that he will report to Matt Forde, executive vice-president of sales and co-production at BBC...

CRTC approves two foreign channels

Media | 05/15/2013 1:04 pm EDT

The CRTC said it approved two foreign TV specialty channels for distribution in Canada. In a decision Tuesday, the CRTC said it approved Ethnic Channels Group Ltd.’s request to add Aksyon TV International to the list of foreign TV channels that can be distributed in Canada. The Filipino-language, niche channel airs “news, information,...

Hastings says Netflix pushing competitive responses

Media | 05/15/2013 12:52 pm EDT

The future of television in the next 10 to 20 years will be application-based as Netflix Inc. pushes traditional TV providers to innovate with online, on-demand models, Netflix chief executive Reed Hastings said. In a speech at...

CBC’s NHL program draws higher audiences as shortened season means lower revenues

Media | 05/14/2013 8:42 pm EDT

Higher audience ratings in a shortened NHL season will not be enough to make up for a decline in revenues for CBC/Radio-Canada's Hockey Night in Canada, said Al Dark, general manager of CBC’s revenue group. The broadcaster's marquee NHL program drew record ratings of 5.15 million...

BCE says CRTC’s possible condition for arbitration not necessary

Media | 05/14/2013 8:02 pm EDT

Any new condition on BCE Inc. that requires CRTC arbitration to resolve disputes before TV content distribution agreements expire would not be “necessary or appropriate,” and if it is imposed as part of its acquisition of Astral Media Inc., the provision should apply to the industry as a whole and not just BCE,...

Tories would have veto power over CBC management hires under Bill C-60, union says

Media | 05/13/2013 7:08 pm EDT

The federal Conservative government could use new powers in its budget implementation bill to veto CBC/Radio-Canada's selections to fill senior management positions, including a vacancy for...

Anik G1 in commercial use: Telesat

Media | 05/10/2013 8:11 pm EDT

Shaw Communications Inc. launched delivery of its direct-to-home TV service over Telesat’s new Anik G1 satellite, Telesat said. In a release Wednesday, Telesat said the launch marked the start of commercial service on the Anik G1 satellite, which it launched last month....

Newcap gets Clarenville FM licence

Media | 05/10/2013 8:00 pm EDT

The CRTC said it approved a Newcap Inc. application to launch an English-language, adult contemporary radio station in Clarenville, N.L. In a decision Friday, the CRTC said the station, if launched, could operate at 97.1 MHz on...

Netflix will exceed 3m Canadian subs this year, producer predicts

Media | 05/10/2013 7:30 pm EDT

Netflix Inc. has more than 2.18 million Canadian subscribers and has become a “significant competitor” in the Canadian media environment, Tom Berry, the president of independent production...

Canadian firms join subscription YouTube channel

Media | 05/10/2013 7:23 pm EDT

Three Canadian production companies will charge monthly fees for subscriptions to their YouTube channels under a new pilot program announced by Google Inc. this week. In a post on its blog Thursday, YouTube, owned by Google, said...

BCE agrees to possible condition to more quickly resolve carriage disputes

Media | 05/10/2013 4:58 pm EDT

BCE Inc. executives appeared before CRTC commissioners to make a final pitch for the company's proposed $3.38 billion purchase of Astral Media Inc., where they twice shot down suggested conditions...

BCE profits higher on wireless growth

Media | 05/09/2013 9:56 pm EDT

BCE Inc. reported higher first quarter profits driven by strong earnings and lower costs at its wireless division. In a quarterly earnings statement released Thursday, Bell reported $566 million in profit in the three-month period that ended March 31, up 6.6 per cent from $531 million in the same period a year earlier. Operating revenues were up 6.3 per cent to $1.32 billion for its wireless division, Bell said, as it added 59,497 postpaid subscribers and data revenues rose 23.9 per cent over the same period of 2012. Bell said it invested $594 million in new capital in the quarter,...

Telus profits rise on wireless, TV and Internet adds

Media | 05/09/2013 9:48 pm EDT

Telus Corp.'s first quarter profits rose by 13.5 per cent due to strong growth across its wireless and wireline services, the company said. In a quarterly earnings statement released Thursday, Telus reported $362 million in...

Bell, Telus chipping away at Rogers’ lead in postpaid wireless

Media | 05/09/2013 8:35 pm EDT

Data usage and subscriber growth powered BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. to higher first quarter wireless revenues as the two companies added more postpaid subscribers at a faster pace than rival incumbent...

BCE would take unfair share of national advertising, content rights deals: Quebecor

Media | 05/09/2013 5:25 pm EDT

BCE Inc., if its deal for Astral Media Inc. goes through, would take an unfair share of national English- and French-language television rights agreements and pan-Canadian advertising deals, Quebecor...

CMPA urges more BCE funding for Canadian films

Media | 05/09/2013 1:32 pm EDT

BCE Inc.’s $3.38-billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. would reverse declining broadcaster support for English-language theatrical films, though more funding for films is needed, said Michael Hennessy, president and CEO of the Canadian Media Production Association said. Hennessy, who appeared before CRTC commissioners at a hearing Wednesday to...

Cogeco says its carriage fees with Bell Media rose 37% from previous agreement

Media | 05/08/2013 8:57 pm EDT

MONTREAL—The “horse trading” of content and channel carriage rights between large, vertically integrated broadcast companies increases wholesale carriage fees for independent...

CRTC consulting on radio licence renewals

Media | 05/08/2013 8:01 pm EDT

The CRTC opened a consultation on more than 100 radio licence renewal applications this week. In three notices of consultation Tuesday, the CRTC said it was consulting on renewal applications for 78 commercial radio stations...

Greenberg requested meeting with Harper following Bell-Astral decision

Media | 05/08/2013 4:09 pm EDT

Astral Media Inc. president and CEO Ian Greenberg requested—and did not receive—a personal meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper to discuss the CRTC’s decision last fall to...

Stoddart to lead ‘Internet privacy sweep’

Media | 05/07/2013 6:09 pm EDT

Canada’s federal privacy commissioner will lead a team of international privacy enforcement agencies as they search for websites with poor privacy practices in an inaugural Internet Privacy Sweep initiative, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner said. In a release Monday, Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart said her office will lead privacy...

TVA reports $5.9m loss in Q1

Media | 05/07/2013 6:08 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc. subsidiary TV Group Inc. reported a net loss of $5.9 million in the first quarter of 2013 despite improved operating incomes in its TV and publishing segments, TVA said in an earnings report Tuesday. In a release, TVA said its television division generated $663,000 in operating income in the first quarter, up from a loss of $4.96 million during the same period a year earlier. The improved earnings, the company said, resulted from the “positive impact” of deconsolidating the financial results of its Sun News channel, and from a $1.74 million rise in operating income across its over-the-air TVA Network “despite a 7.6% decline in advertising revenues.” “Our French-language specialty services registered a 23.4% increase in subscription revenues, confirming the growing popularity of our specialty services and their content,” Pierre Dion, TVA’s president and CEO, said in the release. “We are also very pleased by the audience response to 'La Voix,' which drew an average...

Rogers would look at buying TMN, urges CRTC to order Bell to divest the channel

Media | 05/07/2013 5:29 pm EDT

MONTREAL—Wireless and TV provider Rogers Communications Inc. told CRTC commissioners that the regulator should order BCE Inc. to divest popular pay TV channel The Movie Network, with HBO, as...

YouTube to launch subcription channels this week: report

Media | 05/06/2013 9:07 pm EDT

Google Inc. will roll out subscription channels on its YouTube Inc. online video service as early as this week, the New York Times reported Monday, citing sources with knowledge of the plan. Under...

BCE stands by position on TSN Radio Montreal

Media | 05/06/2013 8:43 pm EDT

As part of BCE Inc.’s deal for Astral Media Inc., the companies stand by their plan to sell or shut down Montreal radio station TSN Radio if the CRTC does not make an exception to its rule for radio market ownership, said...

Mancini joins Rogers as VP of digital sales

Media | 05/06/2013 7:52 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. appointed Michka Mancini as vice-president of it digital sales at its media subsidiary, the company said Monday. In a release, Rogers said Mancini will be based out of Toronto and lead one of Rogers...

Sirius expands Canadian channels

Media | 05/06/2013 6:41 pm EDT

SiriusXM Canada will add seven more Canadian channels to its subscription satellite radio service this month, the company said. In a release Monday, Sirius XM Canada Holdings Inc. said it will carry four new Canadian-made channels and add three existing Canadian channels to its lineup. It said the new channels include current affairs and talkshow channel Canada Talks and three French-language music channels called Chansons, Influence Franco and Attitude Franco. Sirius will also add CBC/Radio-Canada’s CBC Music: Sonica channel, as well as Canada Laughs and Multicultural Radio, the company said....

TheScore secures private financing, adds director

Media | 05/06/2013 6:38 pm EDT

Fresh off the completion of the sale of its television assets to Rogers Communications Inc., theScore Inc. secured $16 million in private financing to develop and market its sports mobile applications. In a release Monday,...

Newcap pulls sale of western radio assets

Media | 05/06/2013 6:37 pm EDT

Newfoundland Capital Corp. Ltd.’s Newcap Inc. subsidiary is no longer considering a sale of its Alberta broadcast division after failing to reach a deal for the radio services, the company said. Newcap said in January that...

CRTC consulting on radio renewal applications

Media | 05/06/2013 6:36 pm EDT

The CRTC is consulting on licence renewals by two FM radio station stations that asked to change their licence conditions, the commission said. In a notice Monday, the CRTC said Canadian Hellenic Cable Radio Ltd. has asked for...

BCE says Astral acquisition to provide more stability for broadcasting sector

Media | 05/06/2013 6:33 pm EDT

MONTREAL—BCE Inc.’s $3.38 billion acquisition of Astral Media Inc. will provide more scale and stability for Bell’s assets in the broadcasting sector, particularly for local TV stations declining in revenues, BCE and Astral officials told CRTC commissioners. A panel of 17 Astral and Bell officials...

Catalyst hires four consultant lobbyists on spectrum issues

Media | 05/03/2013 7:41 pm EDT

Catalyst Capital Group Inc. hired four consultant lobbyists in Ottawa to communicate with the government about spectrum licences and telecom policy, the federal lobbyist registry shows. Newton Glassman, managing partner of Catalyst, a private equity firm, told The Globe and Mail this week that he is interested in owning a...

TVA to air CBC Olympic programming

Media | 05/03/2013 7:05 pm EDT

Quebecor Media Inc.’s French-language specialty channel TVA Sports has reached a deal to broadcast portions of CBC/Radio-Canada’s coverage of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games. In a release Thursday, CBC said the...

The Score, FIBA reach coverage deal

Media | 05/03/2013 7:04 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc.’s The Score specialty sports channel reached a two-year deal with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) for the multiplatform rights to eight international basketball events, Rogers said....

CRTC releases three-year plan, will consult on TV services

Media | 05/02/2013 9:25 pm EDT

The CRTC will launch a “conversation” with Canadians about their television services this year and review its “basic service objective” regime in 2014, the commission said in...

CBC voices Bill C-60 concerns

Media | 05/02/2013 9:00 pm EDT

CBC/Radio-Canada will write to the federal government to voice its concerns over an aspect of the government’s budget implementation bill that it said would reduce the Crown corporation’s ability to manage its relationship with its employees. In a statement posted on CBC’s corporate website Wednesday, the public broadcaster said budget bill C-60, which would give the federal government the ability to control some of the collective bargaining negotiations of four Crown corporations including the CBC, could have “unintended consequences” on the successful operation of some of those agencies. “It is important that these consequences are understood and addressed,” CBC said. “We will be writing to the Government to share our concerns about C-60, and to request a meeting to ensure that Ministers have...

Bell allowed to shift CTVglobemedia benefits

Media | 05/02/2013 8:31 pm EDT

The CRTC approved BCE Inc. division Bell Media Inc.’s request to redirect tangible benefits associated with its 2011 purchase of CTVglobemedia Inc. In a decision Thursday, the CRTC said it approved Bell’s request to...

Canada unaffected as Netflix drops titles in U.S.

Media | 05/02/2013 8:27 pm EDT

About 1,700 classic titles removed from Netflix Inc.’s online library this week will affect U.S. subscribers only and have no impact on Canadian users, Netflix said. Online news service Mashable reported Wednesday that...

VOD can’t compete with Starlight, backers say

Media | 05/02/2013 7:03 pm EDT

Video-on-demand services are not a competitive alternative to the proposed Canadian film channel Starlight: The Canadian Film Channel, film industry backers of the proposed channel told commissioners. At the CRTC’s final...

Sun News open to ‘news neighbourhoods,’ threatens to fold if carriage problems persist

Media | 05/02/2013 4:32 pm EDT

Sun News Network said the possibility of a “news neighbourhood” regulation for the grouping of news channels on the TV dial would be helpful as the Quebecor Media Inc. news channel told CRTC commissioners it would fold if its carriage issues are not addressed. “Our application...

ATN to launch Doordarshan channels

Media | 05/01/2013 9:24 pm EDT

Asian Television Network International Ltd. (ATN) will launch five new channels in Canada in collaboration with Indian broadcaster Doordarshan (DD), the broadcaster said Wednesday. In a release, ATN said the new channels will include DD India, DD News, DD Bharati, DD Urdu and DD Sports. DD India, an Indian satellite TV channel, is a general interest channel that is marketed to Indians living abroad. DD News is “India’s only 24 hours terrestrial news channel which telecasts over 16 hours of live news bulletins daily” in the Hindi and English languages, the ATN release said. DD Bharati offers programming that highlights India’s cultural heritage and health programming, while DD Urdu is a general interest Urdu channel “encapsulating heritage, culture,...

Telus releases mobile TV, film rentals

Media | 05/01/2013 9:13 pm EDT

Telus Corp. said its Optik TV “on the go” app for mobile and online TV viewing now offers on-demand movie and TV show rentals. The company said in a release that customers can rent titles on-demand from a list of more...

Tory budget bill ‘interferes’ in CBC collective bargaining: ACTRA

Media | 05/01/2013 8:58 pm EDT

A measure in the Conservative government’s budget implementation bill would allow it to step into the collective bargaining process at CBC/Radio-Canada and is an “assault on workers’ rights and public broadcasting,” the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) said. Division...

Bell Aliant revenues rise on Internet, IPTV

Media | 05/01/2013 8:44 pm EDT

Bell Aliant Inc. reported operating revenues of $684 million in the first quarter of 2013, rising by $2 million from the same quarter in 2012. Growth in TV, Internet, wireless, and other revenues offset declines in local and long...

DGC and Canadian Film Institute support Starlight

Media | 05/01/2013 8:40 pm EDT

A proposed video-on-demand service to feature Canadian-made films wouldn’t be enough to ensure Canadian consumers have access to those films, Peter Murphy, national policy manager of the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) told CRTC commissioners Wednesday. Instead, consumers want a service like the proposed channel Starlight: The Canadian Film...

CRTC consulting on Saskatoon’s radio market

Media | 05/01/2013 8:08 pm EDT

The CRTC is consulting on the Saskatoon radio market’s ability to support additional stations. In a notice posted on its website Wednesday, the commission said it is also seeking comments on whether it should open a consultation for new radio stations to serve the Saskatoon market. The CRTC said in the notice that upon assessing...

Close appointed president and CEO of Pelmorex

Media | 05/01/2013 8:07 pm EDT

Ron Close was appointed to the position of president and CEO of Pelmorex Media Inc., the company said Wednesday. In a release, Pelmorex, the parent company of The Weather Network, Météomédia, Travelers Network, Beat The Traffic and eltiempo.es, said Close will replace Pierre L. Morrissette in the position, who has been chairman and...

Profits up at Newfoundland Capital

Media | 05/01/2013 8:07 pm EDT

Profits at Newcap Inc.’s parent company, Newfoundland Capital Corp. Ltd., reached $2.1 million in the first quarter of 2013, the Atlantic Canada broadcaster said Thursday. In a financial earnings report, Newfoundland Capital said profits for the three-month period that ended March 31 were up 162 per cent from $0.8 million in the same period the...

House committee urges recruitment of foreign workers for gaming sector

Media | 05/01/2013 6:26 pm EDT

The House of Commons heritage committee, with support from government MPs, recommended that the Conservative government work with the video game industry to recruit more foreign workers in Canada, even as the government removed some key elements from its temporary foreign workers program. In a report on Canada's...

Canadian docs need broadcasters’ support as production falls, DOC says

Media | 04/30/2013 9:24 pm EDT

Canadian broadcasters’ diminishing appetite for documentary programming caused documentary production to fall since 2008, said Lisa Fitzgibbons, executive director of the Documentary Organization of Canada (DOC). In a telephone interview, Fitzgibbons discussed a draft DOC report, to be released publicly in May, that found the number of documentary projects in Canada fell from 591 in 2008-2009 to 457 in 2010-2011, causing total documentary production spending to drop by 21 per cent, or $105 million, during the period. The draft report, provided to The Wire Report and titled “Getting Real 5,” was compiled by Nordicity Group Ltd. and says the drop in production has accounted...

‘We loved Charles at Shaw’

Media | 04/30/2013 9:04 pm EDT

The regulatory group at Shaw Communications Inc. found out Monday morning, before going on a panel at a CRTC hearing in Gatineau, Que., that a key member of their team had died. Charles King, 47, worked in Ottawa as Shaw's vice-president of government relations, and had fallen ill with cancer last year for the second time after successfully...

CRTC approves The Score acquisition

Media | 04/30/2013 8:41 pm EDT

The CRTC approved Rogers Communications Inc.’s acquisition of The Score Television Network Ltd. and its Category A specialty channel, as well as Rogers’ request to relax some of the channel’s licence conditions, the CRTC said. In a decision Tuesday, the CRTC said it cleared the $167 million acquisition, announced last August, and said...

NFB to launch global doc hub

Media | 04/30/2013 8:36 pm EDT

The National Film Board (NFB) is seeking international partners for a new “multiplatform destination” to showcase documentaries from around the world, the federal agency said. In a release Tuesday, the NFB said it is “driving an initiative” to launch a service that would give subscribers “privileged access to documentary...

Telus says cord cutting rising

Media | 04/30/2013 7:58 pm EDT

Cord cutters are rising as a percentage of Telus Corp. customers who are cancelling their TV subscriptions, the company said. At a CRTC hearing Tuesday on applications for mandatory carriage of TV channels under 9(1)(h) of the...

CMPA questions APTN relationship with Animiki See

Media | 04/30/2013 7:02 pm EDT

The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) asked the CRTC to look into Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Inc.'s production arrangement with Animiki See Digital Production Inc. Michael Hennessy, president of the CMPA, told CRTC commissioners at a hearing Tuesday that most of APTN's production is conducted through Animiki See, requiring independent aboriginal TV producers to partner with the production company. “We are told that APTN spends the majority of its licensing dollars on shows that Animiki See is a partner on, leaving whatever money is left over for the independent Aboriginal producers,” Hennessy said, according to his speaking notes. Hennessy, who represents independent producers, asked the commissioners to question APTN about its arrangement with...

Stewart leaves CBC for Twitter

Media | 04/29/2013 9:14 pm EDT

Kirstine Stewart, CBC/Radio-Canada’s executive vice-president of English services since 2010, left the Crown corporation to head Twitter Inc.’s new Canadian office. Adam Bain, Twitter’s president of global revenue, said in a Twitter message Monday that Stewart will become the first employee and managing director of Twitter Canada....

Tangible benefits reach record $177m, Boon Dog says

Media | 04/29/2013 9:13 pm EDT

Tangible benefits spending related to the acquisition of TV broadcast assets reached a record $177 million in the 2011-2012 broadcast year, Ottawa-based consulting firm Boon Dog Professional Services Inc. said. In a release Monday, Boon Dog said of the $177 million spent for the year ended Aug. 31, 2012, $113.5 million or 64 per cent, went to on-screen...

Rogers says it will have 1,000 Canadian films on video-on-demand by summer

Media | 04/29/2013 8:57 pm EDT

Rogers Communications Inc. is aggressively licensing new Canadian films for its video-on-demand platform to better compete with TV rival BCE Inc., not as a way to head off an application for a new Canadian film channel mandated on basic cable, said David Purdy, Rogers’ senior vice-president of content....

Astral launches business news app

Media | 04/29/2013 7:38 pm EDT

Astral Media Inc. launched a new mobile application that aggregates news and content from its business units for clients, the company said. In a release Friday, Astral said the new business-to-business news application features client cases, a calendar of events, brand portfolios, sponsorships and partnerships, and “international media creativity...

CRTC seeking news channel data for possible ‘news neighbourhood’ reg

Media | 04/29/2013 7:06 pm EDT

The CRTC is asking broadcast distributors for information on the dial positions of news channels they carry following questions from commission Chair Jean-Pierre Blais last week about the possibility of creating a “news neighbourhood” regulation for the grouping of news channels. Sun News Network, an all-news...

Justice Fish to retire this spring

Media | 04/26/2013 9:38 pm EDT

Supreme Court Justice Morris Fish will retire at the end of the spring session, the court said. In a release Monday, the Supreme Court said Fish informed Justice Minister Rob Nicholson of his intention to retire, effective Aug. 31, after 10 years on the bench. Justice Fish played a role in Supreme Court decisions on several high-profile broadcasting...

No more mandatory distribution orders, Blue Ant urges

Media | 04/26/2013 9:20 pm EDT

The CRTC should not grant any new mandatory distribution orders and should freeze the wholesale rates of channels that already have one to prevent the cancelation of television subscriptions, independent broadcaster Blue Ant Media Inc. said. Raja Khanna, Blue Ant’s chief executive, told commissioners at a hearing Friday that mandatory...

EA restructures, shuts down Vancouver studios

Media | 04/26/2013 9:15 pm EDT

Organizational restructuring at video game developer Electronic Arts Inc. could lead to the shutdown of Vancouver-based studios Popcap Vancouver and Quicklime Studios, the Financial Post reported Thursday. FP cited news sources Polygon and GameInformer and said former EA employees broke the news of the shutdown on Twitter Thursday. “So Quicklime...

9(1)(h) for affordable services only, PIAC says

Media | 04/26/2013 8:59 pm EDT

The CRTC should grant mandatory distribution orders on an exceptional and “narrow” basis and only to affordable channels that match all of the commission’s criteria, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) said. Janet Lo, PIAC’s legal counsel, told commissioners at a hearing Friday that the prices of subscription television services are increasing at a higher rate than other Canadian communications services, making basic TV service unaffordable. “Since the commission deregulated basic television service in 1997, the average monthly rate for basic service has doubled,” she said during the fourth day of a two-week hearing into applications for mandatory distribution licences. Many broadcasters seeking mandatory distribution, also known as 9(1)(h)...